Turkey: 9 remanded in custody as part of FETO probe

By Mustafa Yildirim

IZMIR, Turkey

A court in western Izmir province on Sunday remanded nine suspects in custody for alleged links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind last year’s defeated coup, according to judicial officials.

Earlier, 18 suspects were arrested in 14 provinces after the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office in western Izmir province issued warrants for 41 suspects.

The court then remanded nine of them in custody over the charge of “being a member of an armed terrorist organization”.

The court ordered the release of the other suspects, two of whom pending trial and three under judicial control.

Among the released was the suspect, only identified by his initials, A.G.D., who allegedly served as a private medical caretaker for Fettullah Gulen, the U.S-based leader of the FETO terror group.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.